De Blasio Doubles Down On BK-Queens Streetcar

Mayor Bill de Blasio gave new details about the proposed Brooklyn-Queens Streetcar, or BQX, and says the project could break ground in 2019-2020, a sign the project may not be just talk after all.

The BQX would connect residents in areas with poor transit options with the slew of huge projects coming online along the waterfront—one of the fastest-growing parts of the city, according to the mayor's administration, with 405,000 residents and nearly 300,000 workers.

The BQX would run along a 16-mile corridor from Astoria to Sunset Park, allowing riders to get from the Queensbridge Houses to the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 27 minutes or from Red Hook Houses to Dumbo in 20 minutes.

De Blasio says the project could generate up to 28,000 jobs and over $25B in wages and economic activity. The BQX could serve roughly 50,000 passengers a day when fully built-out, making it one of the biggest urban streetcar systems in the nation, according to City Hall.

“This corridor is where the present and the future of our city are happening,” says deputy mayor for housing and economic development Alicia Glen. “The BQX will tie all these incredible success stories together.”